Internet Appliances

A preview and summary of the February 1 episode of Phil Hughes' weekly radio program featured on Biz Soup.

This week, I will be talking about
Internet Appliances. This is hot in the Linux space. Plus, this is
the market that Be, Inc. decided to use as the new focus of their
company.

What is an Internet Appliance?

While a toaster running Linux could be an Internet Appliance,
this isn't the right track to be on. An Internet Appliance is a
system in which the primary function is to put
someone on the Internet. In ham radio, we have the term
appliance operator which refers to a ham who
doesn't really know anything about the technology, but just uses a
radio to talk to people. An Internet Appliance is the equivalent
tool that allows someone with no knowledge of Internet technology
or computers to get on the Internet.

How does this differ from a computer system purchased
primarily to connect someone to the Internet? This difference will
grow as Internet Appliances (IA) evolve, but even today, they are
different. An IA is not a general-purpose computer. It is designed
specifically for connecting to the Internet. The software is likely
in ROM (read-only memory) rather than on a disk. That software is
probably only a pared-down version of an operating system and a web
browser. It will, out of the box, talk to the Internet.

All this doesn't necessarily mean it won't be part of a
toaster, or more likely, a stove or refrigerator. In addition,
there will be stand-alone IAs and a very portable version commonly
referred to as a web pad. The web pad is expected to offer wireless
web service. The first example of this type of product is the Palm
7 from 3COM. Plan on seeing more in the near future.

Where are IAs Going?

As IAs evolve, we can expect to see free applications from
vendors. "Free", however, will have strings attached. For example,
a book retailer might offer an application that offers easy access
to reviews, but also offers a quick path to purchasing books from
them. The same goes for a free cookbook from a grocery
chain.

This raises the issue of compatibility between IAs. They
don't need to be manufactured by the same company and they don't
need to run the same processor chip, but they do need a common
language if they are to succeed. After all, if Safeway were to put
together a free cooking program, they would
prefer having one that runs on everyone's IA rather than writing a
bunch of different versions.

When all we were talking about was displaying information,
HTML was the answer. Today, however, we expect a lot more from our
web browser. This is where Java and Javascript come in. As long as
the IA will interpret these languages, you can write portable
applications. For those who dislike writing in Java, an alternative
is JPython. JPython allows you to write in Python and produce a
program that can be interpreted by a Java interpreter.

Much like the commercialization of the Internet, IAs are
bringing it a new group of consumers. They know little about the
technology behind the Net, and are here only as consumers. This is
similar to what happened with commercial radio, and later,
television. What we saw happen was the creation of a consumer
culture, consisting largely of people who were willing to pay the
price of having to sit through advertising in order to get the
information they wanted.

With this new class of Internet Consumer who has little or no
interest in the technology, we will see more buying-habit-related
advertising. In the next few years, there will be some big changes
in advertising trends on the Internet. Much like public TV or
National Public Radio, Internet sites are going to have to weigh
carefully their "free information" vs. "paid by ads"
positions.

Trending Topics

Webinar: 8 Signs You’re Beyond Cron

Scheduling Crontabs With an Enterprise Scheduler
11am CDT, April 29th

Join Linux Journal and Pat Cameron, Director of Automation Technology at HelpSystems, as they discuss the eight primary advantages of moving beyond cron job scheduling. In this webinar, you’ll learn about integrating cron with an enterprise scheduler.